First cukes!

These cukes were fresh picked this afternoon-I love fresh cukes from the garden! Yum!
I left my glass in the picture so you can relate to the size.

I also was able to pick this bowl of raspberries this afternoon. They'll be great with cereal in the morning. :0)

Ah! I love summer!

I may have to change the name of my blog!...

I originally wanted to blog in order to have an outlet for the many pictures I love to take...however, my daughter is taking as many as I am now! LOL
Maybe it should be Briana and Sharri's Snapzshotz??
Anyway...here are a few from the last day or two.
Did you ever wonder where lightning bugs go in daytime? Now you know! They're in our yard!
All of these are Bri's pics...

She caught these two finches skinny dipping in the birdbath in our front yard. :0)
Make sure you wash under those wings!
He really was pretty!

Meanwhile...in another part of the yard is our unsuspecting cat. Bri caught him lazing beside her herb pot...if he only knew what he was missing out front! LOL


Uh oh, I hope he's not licking his chops for the wrong reason!

Below is a picture of Bri's wild flowers. They really are breathtaking!And Bri has gotten very good with the new camera!

You go Bri!

Happy Birthday to Pop!

Last week we had the pleasure of celebrating my father-in-law's 84th birthday at our home.

We fixed him a nice dinner, Bri made him a delicious birthday cake (pictured here), and in turn, Pop entertained us with his life story.
You see, our daughter is interested in geneology, and she came up with a list of questions for him to answer about his parents, grandparents and siblings.
This led to a shortened version of his life story.

We all learned alot, and really enjoyed sharing in his special day...
I highly recommend having your child do this with their grandparents--you'll all learn something you didn't know. :0)

Happy Birthday Pop!

It's incredibly short...LIFE

Tonight I was reminded of the brevity of our time here on earth.
A dear friend lost one of her two daughters 15 yrs ago...I remember being pregnant with my son at the viewing...the girl was only about 19.
Well, the same dear friend lost her only other child, her beloved daughter of 36 yrs. last week.
Tonight was the viewing, and it was so difficult for everyone involved...my heart truly went out to this mom, dad, aunt, and little child of 5 left behind...

Tonight, I hug my children a little tighter. Smile at them a little brighter. And thank the One who made them, and allowed me the privilege of being their mom, for one more day.

Hug your loved ones close tonight.

Nature shots

I just couldn't resist sharing a few more of the nature pics I took on our hike for Bri's b-day!

Above is one of the VERY tall Trees!
These are some wild raspberries growing along the path. When we came back by...the red one was gone! Something ate it! LOL

I loved the way the light shone through the leaves of this tree. I love being in the woods!

Even this ordinary clover flower was beautiful--wasn't it??

I love water, the sound of water, feel of water, and the way it looks! If you can see to the bottom of this little stream, there is micah or something shiney--it looks like gold!

My mom likes tiger lilies...I can see why!

Now these last shots are my daughter's and these were actually taken at home. It isn't a daisy that the praying mantis is on, it's chamomile (Very tiny) and, the mantis is a baby-maybe about 1" long.

Neat pics though aren't they?

Vision Forum GIVEAWAY Better Hurry! Time's Running Out!

Hurry! This Giveaway Ends on Monday!

This post is being moved to the top until the contest end. Please scroll down for NEW POSTS! :0)

Well, they've done it again!
Vision Forum has made it possible for me to giveaway one of the DVD's of my choice- from their new set listed above--to one of you!

I have chosen the new DVD by the Botkin sisters: What is Biblical Femininity?

In this powerful message, Anna Sofia and Elizabeth Botkin seek to explain what biblical femininity is and what it is not. True femininity, they maintain, is not based on tradition, stereotypes, or romantic images from the past. It doesn’t matter how “girly” a girl’s clothes are or how good her manners are — if a lady’s heart is not devoted to putting biblical priorities first, she’s not practicing femininity as God designed it. Given at the Vision Forum Ministries’ Father & Daughter Retreat, this inspirational message provides hope and encouragement for ladies young and old.

Now for the fine print--instructions on how to enter!

You do NOT need a blog to enter!

I will be choosing a winner at random that has done the following...

You must sign in on the comments at the end of this post to enter-giving me your name, and a way to contact you if I don't already know you.

If you don't give me a way to contact you-I will choose another winner.

If you would like to double your chances at winning-you can do so by: entering my contest on your blog (and linking back to me)--and then commenting telling me you did so...and I will enter you a 2nd time

OR
If you don't have a blog/website--you may email this contest info to 5 people, and then comment below letting me know that you did so, and I will enter you a 2nd time.

The Deadline to enter is June 23rd at 9a.m. EST

To view the entire collection--please : Click here: Reclaiming the Culture Collection
This collection is 20% off right now.
If you order, please remember to use my Vision Forum Affiliates link to the right--it will help me out! :0)

A Picture Perfect Day...

As a surprise for my daughter's 18th B-day, my dh secretly took off work for the day, and then got us some sandwiches from a nearby (delicious) place, and took it to a state park that we've always wanted to visit just over the state line in MD. The above covered bridge was so pretty!

It was a glorious summer day, with the temps only in the 70's (to my delight!) It was such a neat park! So clean, and lovely! The pic above is of my daughter catching these teeny tiny toads--there were 100's of them! :0) (she was in her glory!)

There was lots of wildlife and critters of every size and shape! My husband even saw a deer drinking from the water, but I was too slow with the camera to get a picture. :0)

Below is the b-day girl with her daddy :0)

Above is me and the b-day boy

Did I mention my ds loves anything that gets clothes or shoes wet!? LOL

It was a great blessing to spend time as a family observing and wondering at God's awesome creation!

Golden Birthday times TWO - otherwise known as: I have an 18 year old!

I can't believe it! My baby girl celebrates her golden birthday today! (If you don't know what that is--see post below)

And, this is no ordinary birthday....it's her 18th! (we reminded her this morning, that now she can vote!) :0)

She is our little princess--but all grown up now... we pray that she grows closer to the Lord with each passing birthday...

:0)

May you have the Happiest of Birthday's Bri!

A Golden Birthday

When you celebrate the same birthday number as the date...they call it your Golden Birthday... well, my son had his on Sunday as he turned 15 on the 15th! He and his Dad celebrated together, as it was Father's Day. (read: they were both spoiled rotten!) LOL

You can see how the years have flown by! I can hardly believe how fast they go! Now the little boy in the picture above, towers over everyone else in our family!

I pray that his character towers as tall!

Happy Birthday Brad!

Flight Manuevers...

Well, remember the new baby robin hatchling, and the egg still unhatched that my daughter photographed, and I blogged about? Well, they are practicing already for flight!

Yep, the robin pictured above is one of them! The parents have them practicing flying, they take them out for a turn or two, but they get snug in their nest for the evening again. It's been quite interesting to watch!

Soon, maybe today?? they will fly the nest for good....and that will be.....

THE END

Bird's Eye View...

My daughter captured some pictures of the latest residents on our back patio! :0) These robins have built a nest under the overhang on the back of our house for the last several years.

We started w/4 eggs, and ended with two (although we don't know what happened to the other 2)

These little guys grew so fast! And, they really keep their parents busy trying to keep them fed! (Gee, that sounds like my husband and I! We can barely keep up with the eating requirements around here--and our kids are growing up waaayyy too quickly!)

Farewell to an Old, Dear, and Faithful Friend MADDIE

Our family had to make the very difficult decision to put our Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Maddie down this morning. She was suffering from Mitral Valve Disorder.

Maddie was 9 years old, and was the best of the best. She was dear to us, and will be greatly missed!

ROAD TRIP

Well, my dh let us girls loose on a road trip! My dear daughter (otherwise known as the graduate) with her artistic bent-loves old houses and architecture. And so, she wanted to spend the day just taking pictures of different unique, mostly old, houses.

We did alot of crazy driving...risked our lives in traffic, and also put ourselves at risk for dog attacks, shotgun blasts etc... But we had a blast.

I am posting only a couple of the hundred or so shots she took! :0)

Two that I thought were really neat! The cottage above, and the neat wall below. See your dream house among these?? :0)

We made some new friends as you can see above and below!

It was a very special day....spent with my very special daughter! We plan to do this again SOON!